Broad Front (Uruguay) facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Broad Front Frente Amplio

Leader	Yamandú Orsi
President	Fernando Pereira Kosec
Founder	Líber Seregni
Founded	5 February 1971; 54 years ago (1971-02-05)
Headquarters	Colonia 1367, Montevideo
Ideology	Progressivism Social democracy Democratic socialism
Political position	Centre-left to left-wing
Regional affiliation	COPPPAL São Paulo Forum
Colors	Red Blue White
Chamber of Representatives	48 / 99
Senate	16 / 30
Intendencias	3 / 19
Mayors	32 / 125
Party flag

The Broad Front (which in Spanish is Frente Amplio, or FA) is a major political group in Uruguay. It is like a team of different political parties working together. Since 2025, the Broad Front has been the main party in charge of Uruguay's government. Before that, they also led the country from 2005 to 2020. Three presidents of Uruguay have come from the Broad Front: Tabaré Vázquez, José Mujica, and Yamandú Orsi. Since 1999, the Broad Front has been the largest group in Uruguay's main law-making body, called the General Assembly.

How the Broad Front Started and Grew
Groups within the Broad Front
When Groups Left the Broad Front
What the Broad Front Believes In
Elections the Broad Front Has Been In
- Presidential Elections
  - A Note on Old Election Rules
- Chamber of Representatives and Senate Elections
See also

How the Broad Front Started and Grew

The Broad Front began in 1971. It was formed by more than a dozen smaller political groups that had similar ideas. The first leader and presidential candidate for the Broad Front was Líber Seregni, a general.

In 1973, there was a military takeover in Uruguay, and the Broad Front was made illegal. But when democracy returned to Uruguay in 1984, the Broad Front became active again.

Later, in 1994, a group called Progressive Encounter joined forces with the Broad Front. They started running in elections together. Another group, Nuevo Espacio, also joined them. So, for a while, they ran elections under a longer name.

By 2005, these groups officially merged into the Broad Front. This made the Broad Front even stronger and more united.

The Broad Front is made up of several different political parties. Some of the main ones include:

Uruguay Assembly
Socialist Party of Uruguay
Communist Party of Uruguay
New Space
Artiguist Stream
Movement of Popular Participation
Christian Democratic Party of Uruguay
Progressive Alliance
People's Victory Party

Challenges Before 2004

Before the 2004 election, Uruguay faced tough economic times. The country had tried new economic plans, but these led to problems like a weaker currency. Many people had to work in unofficial jobs to survive. In 2002, an economic crisis from neighboring countries spread to Uruguay, making things even worse. The country needed help from international organizations to deal with the crisis. This was the situation when the Broad Front started campaigning for the 2004 election.

The Broad Front became a very important political force in the 1994 election. Their candidate, Tabaré Vázquez, got the most votes of any single candidate. However, because of an old election rule called "Ley de lemas," he didn't become president. This rule meant that the party with the most total votes won, and the Broad Front was still the third-largest party then.

The "Ley de lemas" rule for presidential elections was changed in 1996. For the 1999 election, Uruguay started using a "two-round system." This meant if no candidate won more than half the votes in the first round, the top two candidates would have a second election. In 1999, Vázquez led in the first round but lost in the second. Still, the Broad Front became the largest party in the country's legislature.

2004 Election: A New Era with Tabaré Vázquez

In the 2004 election, the Broad Front won for the first time. This was a big moment because it was the first time a left-leaning party gained the majority in Uruguay. They won because they offered more moderate policies and supported programs to help working-class people. Many people were tired of the old economic ideas and wanted more support from the government.

When Tabaré Vázquez became president in 2005, with the Broad Front having a majority in the General Assembly, he worked to improve relationships with other countries in Latin America. He also started a large program to help people living in poverty. This program was very important for gaining support from people with lower incomes in future elections. Uruguay needed a lot of economic help at the time, as many people were still living in poverty. A key person in the economic changes was Danilo Astori, who worked to attract money from other countries to help Uruguay's economy grow.

2009 Election: José Mujica and Social Changes

The Broad Front continued to have strong support from voters. In the 2009 election, José Mujica became president. During his time, he introduced several new social policies. For example, laws were changed to allow same-sex marriage. The economy continued to grow, and Uruguay was seen as a safe place for foreign investment.

2014 Election: Tabaré Vázquez Returns

The Broad Front supported Tabaré Vázquez again in the 2014 election, and he won a second term as president. He won with a clear majority in the second round. During his second term, Vázquez faced some criticism for his foreign policy decisions.

2019 Election: A Change in Government

In the 2019 general election, the Broad Front supported Daniel Martínez. Martínez won the first round but was defeated in the second round by Luis Lacalle Pou from the National Party. This was the first time in 15 years that the Broad Front lost the presidential election. They also lost their majority in the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate, but they remained the largest single party in the General Assembly.

2024 Election: Back in Power

After five years out of government, the Broad Front prepared for the 2024 election. They had three main candidates for their internal primary elections: Andrés Lima, Carolina Cosse, and Yamandú Orsi. Cosse and Orsi were the strongest candidates. Carolina Cosse was seen as more left-leaning, while Yamandú Orsi presented himself as a more central and practical candidate who was open to talking with other parties.

Yamandú Orsi won the primary election. On the same night, it was announced that Carolina Cosse would be his running mate, creating a team with both a male and female candidate. In the first round of the election, their team received the most votes. They also won a majority in the Senate. However, they were two seats short of a majority in the Chamber of Representatives.

Because they didn't get more than half of all votes, the election went to a second round. It was between Orsi and Álvaro Delgado from the National Party. Even though polls showed it would be a very close race, the Broad Front team of Orsi and Cosse won by a margin of 3.9%. Delgado quickly accepted the results.

On March 1, 2025, Yamandú Orsi officially became Uruguay's new president. This meant the Broad Front returned to leading the country after five years.

Groups within the Broad Front

The Broad Front is made up of many different political parties that work together. Here are some of the main ones that have members in the government:

	Main Ideas	Political Stance	Leader	Representatives	Senators
Movement of Popular Participation Movimiento de Participacion Popular	Progressive ideas Social democracy	Centre-left to Left-wing	Lucía Topolansky	35 / 99	9 / 30
Uruguay Assembly Asamblea Uruguay	Social democracy Social liberalism	Centre to Centre-left	Danilo Astori	5 / 99	2 / 30
Socialist Party of Uruguay Partido Socialista del Uruguay	Social democracy Democratic socialism	Centre-left to left-wing	Gonzalo Civila	0 / 99	1 / 30
Communist Party of Uruguay Partido Comunista del Uruguay	Communism	Left-wing	Juan Castillo	5 / 99	2 / 30
Progressive Alliance Alianza Progresista	Social democracy	Centre-left	Rodolfo Nin Novoa	2 / 99	1 / 30
Artiguist Tendency Vertiente Artiguista	Artiguism Social democracy	Centre-left	Enrique Rubio	0 / 99	2 / 30
New Space Nuevo Espacio	Social democracy Third Way	Centre to Centre-left	Rafael Michelini	1 / 99	0 / 30
People's Victory Party Partido por la Victoria del Pueblo	Marxism Libertarian socialism	Left-wing to far-left	Hugo Cores	1 / 99	0 / 30

When Groups Left the Broad Front

Even though the Broad Front has grown by adding new groups, some groups have also left over time:

In 1989, two parties left to form a new group in the middle of the political spectrum.
In 1993, a far-left group also split off to form its own political party.
In 2006, another group from the far-left left the Broad Front and created a new coalition called Popular Assembly.

What the Broad Front Believes In

The Broad Front is mostly made up of groups that believe in "progressivism." This means they support ideas like:

Artiguism: Following the ideas of José Gervasio Artigas, a national hero of Uruguay.
Power to the people: Believing that ordinary people should have a strong say in government.
Democracy: Supporting a government where people elect their leaders.
Anti-oligarchy: Opposing rule by a small group of powerful people.
Anti-imperialism: Being against one country controlling another.
Anti-racism: Working against racism.
Anti-patriarchy: Working against a society where men hold most of the power.

In terms of the economy, they often follow "social democratic" policies. This means they support government programs to help people, like social welfare programs.

While most groups in the Broad Front lean left, some have slightly different views. For example, some groups are more "fiscally conservative," meaning they are careful with government spending. Others are more "socially conservative" on certain issues. Some groups, like Uruguay Assembly and New Space, are considered "centrist," meaning their ideas are more in the middle of the political spectrum.

Elections the Broad Front Has Been In

The Broad Front has participated in many elections in Uruguay.

Presidential Elections

Election	Candidate	Running mate	Votes	%	Votes	%	Result
Election	Candidate	Running mate	First Round		Second Round		Result
1971	Líber Seregni	Juan José Crottogini	304,275	18.3%	—	—	Lost
1984	Juan José Crottogini	José D'Elía	401,104	21.3%	—	—	Lost
1989	Líber Seregni	Danilo Astori	418,403	20.35%	—	—	Lost
1994	Tabaré Vázquez	Rodolfo Nin Novoa	621,226	30.6%	—	—	Lost
1999			861,202	40.1%	982,049	45.9%	Lost
2004			1,124,761	51.7%	—	—	Elected Y
2009	José Mujica	Danilo Astori	1,105,262	47.96%	1,197,638	54.63%	Elected Y
2014	Tabaré Vázquez	Raúl Sendic	1,134,187	47.81%	1,226,105	53.48%	Elected Y
2019	Daniel Martínez	Graciela Villar	949,376	40.49%	1,152,271	49.21%	Lost
2024	Yamandú Orsi	Carolina Cosse	1,071,826	46.12%	1,196,798	52.08%	Elected Y

A Note on Old Election Rules

For many years, Uruguay had a special election rule called the "Ley de lemas." This rule allowed each political party to have several presidential candidates. The total votes for all candidates from one party would decide which party won the presidency. Then, the candidate from that winning party who got the most votes would become president. This system was used until 1994. In 1996, the rules changed, and from the 1999 election onwards, each party could only have one presidential candidate.

Chamber of Representatives and Senate Elections

These tables show how many seats the Broad Front won in the two parts of Uruguay's legislature: the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate.

Election	Votes	%	Chamber seats	+/−	Senate seats	+/−	Position	Size
1971	304,275	18.3%	18 / 99	New	5 / 30	New	Opposition	3rd
1984	401,104	21.3%	21 / 99	3	6 / 30	1	Opposition	3rd
1989	418,403	20.35%	21 / 99	0	7 / 30	1	Opposition	3rd
1994	621,226	30.8%	31 / 99	10	9 / 31	2	Opposition	3rd
1999	861,202	40.1%	40 / 99	9	12 / 30	3	Opposition	1st
2004	1,124,761	51.7%	52 / 99	12	17 / 30	5	Majority	1st
2009	1,105,262	47.96%	50 / 99	2	16 / 30	1	Majority	1st
2014	1,134,187	47.81%	50 / 99	0	15 / 30	1	Majority	1st
2019	949,376	40.49%	42 / 99	8	13 / 30	2	Opposition	1st
2024	1,071,826	46.12%	48 / 99	6	16 / 30	3	Minority	1st